[Buddha]

48 hours after placing my beloved HP890s up for sale I walked into a pawnbrokers, and to my great surprise, spotted a set of the legendary V6 Sonys.

Now here in Australia the V6/7506 is a rare and expensive beast and it didnt take me long to test the drivers were ok, hand over the princely sum of U.S. $12.50, and get the hell out of there with a big grin and a roar from the trusty V twin.

Just have to find some pads to replace these originals that have pulled away from the inner circumference and theyll be good as new.

Happy Camper

 

[Snufkin]

You bastige!

I can get you a pair of Beyer pads if you want

Not sure how much, probably around $40AU (don't know freight costs)

Of course... I'll have to have a listen to the V6s as well...

 

[jlo mein]

hmmm....pawnshops...i should try searching more of those...

only, dont most of them likely sell stolen goods?

 

[Buddha]

Quote:

Originally posted by Snufkin You bastige! I can get you a pair of Beyer pads if you want Not sure how much, probably around $40AU (don't know freight costs) Of course... I'll have to have a listen to the V6s as well...

$40 is nearly twice what i paid for the headphones...LOL!

Perhaps they could be slipped in with another order to save on the freight cost?

And of course you'll have to have a listen to see what our American friends get so excited about ....

Initial impression is...

"What happened to the bass and the soundstage???"

I thought these cans were supposed to have ample bass? Perhaps its the worn pads.

Start to "clamp" after about an hour but otherwise quite comfortable.

Further listening required...

 

[Snufkin]

Actually that's pretty much the going price for the Beyer pads I'm afraid, $40 is basically doing them for cost + freight.

If you want a pair of headphones as well as pads, it might work out cheaper, relatively speaking

 

[Duncan]

Quote:

Originally posted by Buddha ...Initial impression is... "What happened to the bass and the soundstage???" I thought these cans were supposed to have ample bass? Perhaps its the worn pads.... ...Further listening required...

I'm shocked!!

What is your reference point for bass? Cerwin Vega VS15s?

I must agree that the soundstage is restricted though... thats why I got my MDR-F1s

 

[Buddha]

My reference point Duncan is the Philips HP890 (which sold last night btw)

The frequency range seems compressed on the V6 .... which has the effect of draining music of its "vibrancy". Its a bit like colour versus black and white... the clarity is there but the "life" has been sucked out of it.

It could be argued that the V6 do a better job of reproducing certain instruments, but my overall impression is that they dont even come close to the "musical experience" that the 890s provide.

Build quality of the V6 is superb and they sound quite good out of my short wave radio.

I really like your mdr-f1s Duncan, but from what Ive read, they probably wouldnt provide the kind of bass I enjoy.

Its not rock and roll if you cant hear the kick drum...

 

[joelongwood]

Quote:

Initial impression is... "What happened to the bass and the soundstage???"

Yes, the soundstage is missing in action on the V6s.......but the BASS??.........definitely something wrong there.

To my ears, the V6s have excellent bass out of just about any source.

 

[Buddha]

After reading a gazillion recommendations for the V6 you might say that I was just a little surprised too Joe.

Perhaps Ive been spoilt by the subwoofer like bottom end of the HP890s .... or .... considering the hard life these V6 have obviously seen, there may be some physical damage to the drivers... but my gut feeling is that the drivers are fine.

Careful fitment does improve matters slightly, but this is not what I expected from these cans.

I think it really boils down to the fact they dont reproduce the low frequency sound that i have grown accustomed to.

After all is said and done Im quite happy to have rescued these old cans and given them a happy home.

 

[Tim D]

I don't really like the V6 enough to own a pair, but I would not say bass is a weak point of the phones...in fact it is one of the redeeming qualities of the phones IMO.

I can't imagine weak bass from the V6 unless driven by an inadequate source/amp or you are just accustomed to bloated bass. IMO a headphone that sounds like it has *more* bass than the V6 might have a bit too much bass bloat for me. Maybe midbass bloat.

The low frequencies should be there period on these pair of headphones down to extreme depths. The only way I can imagine more bass is mid-bass bloat, or even more visceral bass.

Jan considered the HP890 to not be as deep as the HD600. And I know the HD600 is not as deep as the V6.

 

[NeoPoe]

to me the V6's do have the bass, if u listen closely then u can hear it. the bass on the v6's just doesnt seem to have a punch to it that id like to hear, it took sometime to get used too, but not long. the only thing i miss is feeling the intense WHUMP in some mixes or songs, or just feeling the vibrations from lower strings in orchestras.

but like i said, the bass is there, it just doesnt appear to have a punch to it (to me at least)

 

[Buddha]

Quote:

Originally posted by Tim D I can't imagine weak bass from the V6 unless driven by an inadequate source/amp or you are just accustomed to bloated bass.

Ummm...
of those gazillion recommendations for the V6, 99% say "easily driven from virtually any source", or words to that effect.

You don't own the V6... have never heard the 890s... but seem to be able to speak with authority on the subject. If only I had your magical abilities Id be able to spot "mid bass bloat" in my sleep.

Guess ill just have to stick to doing A / B comparisons...

But alas it is time to package the 890s up and send them to their new owner.

Controversy to the bitter end.

 

[Tim D]

You are right I don't own the V6...I listened to them thoroughly before I decided to return em. I usually don't keep phones I don't really like...you can be poor just keeping the headphones you actually like, I don't want to know what it is like to keep phones I don't like too.

The "driven by 99%" claim no longer works too well since the market continues to be polluted with headphone jacks that keep getting worse and worse. When they say it can sound decent without a dedicated amplifier...I think of something like the headphone jack of my Pana 570. It used to be a very "average" headphone jack, but since then there has had so many other weaker or bad sounding headphone jacks that continue to flood the market that all of the sudden it is quite decent for a portable headphone jack. But the V6 is still a headphone that improves a lot by something as simple as a CHA47.

I never said I heard the HP890...I just know that Jan has a reputable enough ear to compare the HD600 to the HP890. And the V6 has better bass extension then the HD600 again having heard both.

I don't need to hear the HP890 to know that the V6 compared to many other phones I have heard, still have very abundant bass response when driven adequately. According to your authority the HP890 would have some of the most profound and greatest bass response ever assuming your V6's are working and driven properly. From other peoples accounts of the 890 I never got this impression or I would have bought a pair. One of the more detailed reviews I've read being delenda est sony's

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/showth...&threadid=9790

No I am not the headphone bass authority, but I am still quite preferential when it comes to bass response in headphones. IMO I think that a lot of people in fact ignore absolute low bass and focus on midbass the most when it comes to judging bass performance. But most music typically only goes down to mid-bass for the most part as well.

 

[MacDEF]

Quote:

Originally posted by Buddha I think it really boils down to the fact they dont reproduce the low frequency sound that i have grown accustomed to.

I'd say that's a good explanation. The 890 do have decent bass, but their bass is not as extended as the bass of the V6/7506, and it's not as tight -- the bass on the 890 is just a bit boomier, and has just a tad more emphasis on the upper bass region. This makes them seem like they have more "forceful" bass.

I think it's just a matter of getting used to a different kind of bass response.

 

[impoeticpoet]

Quote:

Originally posted by MacDEF The 890 do have decent bass, but their bass is not as extended as the bass of the V6/7506, and it's not as tight -- the bass on the 890 is just a bit boomier, and has just a tad more emphasis on the upper bass region.

What exactly do you mean by "extended bass"?

and I totally agree with the V6:Black and White picture analogy: just what I thought when I compared them to my SR-80's.